Eleven-year-old Tom Garnett, of Lane End Farm, Draughton, was over the moon after his Beltex lamb was chosen as supreme champion at the annual Young Farmers show and sale of prime lambs at Skipton Auction Mart. (Mon, July 26).

Tom, who has now completed his primary education at Beamsley School and will start at Upper Wharfedale Secondary School after the summer holidays, is fast taking after his parents John and Judy Garnett, who have themselves notched up a number of championship successes at Skipton prime lamb shows.

Tom is no stranger to the exhibition arena, as he has a small flock of nine Wensleydale ewes, which he has already shown and will be doing so again at Skipton’s annual show of rare, minority and native breeds on Saturday, September 4.

In the interim, Tom is now £100 better off – he also received a new trophy from Jane Chapman, of sponsor Allflex - after his prime lamb title winner sold for top price in show to Stuart Price Butchers, of Crossflatts, Bingley.

The Lime Court shop regularly buys champion and prize winning prime lambs at Skipton and its latest acquisition will be on sale from this weekend.

“We continue to source the best quality local meat and remain staunch in our support of local farmers. We are delighted to have secured the young farmers’ champion, as these youngsters represent the very future of farming and deserve all the support and encouragement they can get at an early age,” said shop owner Stuart Price.

The fixture was staged purposely at the start of the school holidays to give up-and-coming young farmers early experience of what it’s like to participate in an agricultural show and sale.

Indeed, one of the youngest competitors, six-year-old Freddie Shorrock, of Cliviger, Burnley, exhibited the first prize winner in the up-to-ten-year-olds age group, another Beltex, which went on to become reserve champion and sold for £89 to Ilkley-based Rowland Agar wholesale butchers. Freddie, who also won the under-10’s class at last year’s show, is a pupil at St John’s Primary School, Cliviger.

Winner of the 17 to 26-year-olds class was North Craven’s Kelly Armitage, 24, of Keasden, with a Beltex-cross lamb – Kelly is secretary of the Northern Beltex Society. It sold for £89 to long established Thirsk butcher Harry Lee, of H Lee & Sons Butchers, which has shops in both Castlegate and Market Place.

The business also acquired two further prize winning lambs, both runners-up in their respective age groups, paying £95 for a Beltex-cross-Texel lamb from six-year-old Matthew Garth, of Keasden, Clapham, and £94 for a Texel-cross lamb from Robert Ellis, 16, of Addingham Moorside.

Show judge was Richard Caton, of Stainforth, Settle, with livestock identification industry company Allflex also presenting goody bags to all prize winners.